Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between George Freeman and Andrea Jenkyns

Tuesday 5th July 2016 Commons Chamber

[Andrea Jenkyns (Morley and Outwood) (Con)]

T7. To expand on the question asked by the shadow Secretary of State, I too would like to raise the case of my constituent Abi Longfellow who suffers from dense deposit disease and is awaiting a decision by the NHS’s specialised commissioning body. She and her family have been subjected to frequent delays and miscommunications. I first met Health Ministers, NICE and NHS England a year ago to discuss Abi’s situation. What steps will the Government take to ensure that decisions on treatments such as this are taken in a timely fashion and that families are kept updated on the progress of those decisions?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Life Sciences (George Freeman)]

My hon. Friend raises an important point. NHS England is currently unable to take final decisions on this year’s new treatments, including this particular drug, until the courts have decided whether pre-exposure prophylaxis HIV prevention should compete with other candidate drugs. She makes an important point about timeliness, and that is why I am leading an accelerated access review to speed up the way in which such decisions are taken.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between George Freeman and Andrea Jenkyns

Tuesday 15th March 2016 Commons Chamber

[Andrea Jenkyns (Morley and Outwood) (Con)]

T3. I was a comprehensive school girl who left school at 16, so social mobility is very important to me, and I am pleased to be involved in the new inquiry by the all-party parliamentary group on social mobility into getting people from diverse backgrounds into top professions. Will my hon. Friend tell me what steps the Government are taking to ensure that more people, regardless of their background, can secure further education or employment?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Life Sciences (George Freeman)]

I am delighted to have the opportunity to set out the Government’s support for our apprenticeship programme. We have committed to doubling spending on it and to see the number of apprenticeships rise to 3 million this year. They are a crucial platform for providing opportunity and social mobility in areas too often left behind in the past.